"And Fifty..?"

CPBigwood’s latest auction raised £11.7 million as a packed sales room generated lively bidding.

The hammer came down on 139 lots at Aston Villa Football Club on September 22, resulting in a conversion rate of 73 per cent. Once after-sales are included it is expected that the respective figures will be £12 million and 75 per cent

Amid the bargains there were plenty of properties producing keen interest among the 600-strong gathering including a number of council-owned sites.

Offices at 270 Hagley Road, Birmingham, which had a guide price of £110,000, went for £230,000. Two lots of land at Grice Street, West Bromwich, with guide prices of between £5,000 and £10,000, were bought for £42,500 and £68,500.

And the auction disproved the theory that traditional student properties are no longer in demand given the growth of purpose-built accommodation. No.32 Exeter Road, Selly Oak, with a guide price of £95,000, sold for £177,000, while 157 Dawlish Road, also Selly Oak, went for £170,000 compared to a guide of £115,000.

Two highlights were 2 Hermitage Road, Edgbaston, and 43 Henrietta Street, off Birmingham’s Constitution Hill.

The former, a vacant freehold five bedroom detached property in need of refurbishment, went for £460,000, well above a guide price of £375,000, after attracting 70 pre-auction viewings. The latter – 22 self-contained flats – which had been empty for ten years, vandalised and taken over by pigeons, made £341,000 against a guide of £175,000. “It is an easy walk into the city centre and the sort of property in demand from builders looking for refurbishment jobs,” said director Jonathan Hackett, joint head of auctions.

On the commercial front, JB’s, 15 Castle Hill, Dudley, a freehold, former live music and night club venue, made the top end of the guide price – £225,000. Regent House, Frederick Street, Hockley, a comparatively modern office block, notched £500,000 and a former banqueting suite, now a church, in appropriately Church Road, Aston, was purchased for £335,000.

Meanwhile, many in the room held on for the last item, 46 Vicarage Road, All Saints, Wolverhampton, a derelict mid-terrace home, guide price £10,000, made more than £30,000.

Mr Hackett said: “We were very pleased with the overall outcome.

“There was a big variety of lots – from former pubs, redundant offices and out of date children’s homes to an array of domestic properties, big piles for large families through to starter homes needing a lot of work.

“Auctions are proving increasingly attractive to people, both buyers and sellers. It is a sure way of doing a deal at a time when both the commercial property and residential markets remain sticky.

“Our auctions have gone exceptionally well all year and we are hoping for a bumper conclusion with our pre-Christmas one.”

It was the first CPBigwood auction following the recent merger of Bigwood and Curry & Partners.

The next takes place on December 8, also at the Holte Suite, Aston Villa, and entries are now being accepted. Interested parties should contact the auction team on 0121 233 5046.

For further information, please contact:

Jonathan Hackett, Director, Joint Head of Auctions, CPBigwood Chartered Surveyors and Auctioneers, 45 Summer Row, Birmingham B3 1JJ

0121 233 5046

www.cpbigwood.com